Tamil Nadu association is affiliated to apex body All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD), which is planning the country-wide closure of shops on October 14.

“We want to seek the central government’s attention on this issue,” said Anandhan. Though selling online is not legal, many online vendors are offering medicines online without a doctor’s prescription.

Online, anybody could buy medicines without doctor’s prescription and also in large quantities, he said. Though some online stores attach existing pharmacies to sell online, it cannot be accepted as several problems need to be addressed, he noted.

“If some medicine needs to be sold based on prescriptions, forged medical prescription can be uploaded just to buy them. It becomes a problem then. Therefore, we are going on a stir,” he said.